Wednesday, April 27, 2005

That's Not A Hat

Oh, I'm still knitting plenty of hats. But, I did manage to find time to knit this bag. I didn't mention it until now, mostly because I forgot to take any "before" pictures. Here it is finished. It is a plain version of Chic Shopping Bag from the book Pursenalities by Eva Wiechmann. I like the rectangular box construction. The size (about 14"x11"x3") will be good for toting small quilting or embroidery projects (I would use it for knitting projects, but it's not for me). I added an inner pocket to hold small items. Also, to give some support to the bottom, I cut a piece of plastic to fit. I read somewhere to use quilting template plastic. I found some for about $3 a sheet, but I decided to use a plastic placemat I had at home instead. I think it probably cost less than $1. Those flexible cutting mats would work well too and they are also very affordable. This bag will be a thank-you gift for a friend who is teaching me to quilt. She is a talented quilter who loves to share her craft with others. She is also very generous. She let four of us use her patterns, thread, needles and raid her stash for our fabric. Then, has patiently answered all of our questions over and over again. What a great friend!